Siege of Masyaf (1189)

The Siege of Masyaf was a military conflict between the Christian Templar Order and the Muslim Assassins/Hashshashin during the Crusades era of the Middle Ages. Assisted by double agent Haras, the Templars achieved surprise and captured Masyaf from the Assassins, who later recaptured it and killed Haras.

Background
Masyaf had long been the capital of the Levantine Assassins branch of the Hashshashin, led by Rashid ad-Din Sinan, and had withstood an 1176 Saracen siege by Saladin's army. Its impenetrable defenses were centered around the castle, with the library at the top of the tower holding vast knowledge. The Assassins were powerful in deciding the power struggles in the Near East, but were challenged by their mortal enemies, the Knights Templar. In 1189, defective Assassin Haras gave the Templars the chance to take Masyaf by taking over the castle for them and opening the gates.

Siege
The Templar army attacked the village, massacring its inhabitants, while the Assassins fought a withdrawal up to the Masyaf Gate. They slew many Templar soldiers that were fighting in the village, using their near-perfect combat skills to cut down dozens of the attackers. Altair Ibn-La'Ahad reached the gate, where he found Haras standing there, telling him that he had Al Mualim as a hostage. He had him put in the castle with the other hostages, and closed the gates.

Altair climbed planks nailed to the castle walls and killed the Templars on the ramparts, before jumping off and killing Haras in an air assassination. He freed Al Mualim, and the two proceeded to push the remaining Knights Templar out of Masyaf.